Employing Battery Storage to Increase Photovoltaic Self-sufficiency in a Residential Building of Sweden

Photovoltaic (PV) or hybrid PV-battery systems are promising to supply power for residential buildings. In this study, the load profile of a multi apartment building in Gothenburg and the PV production profile under local weather conditions are compared and analyzed. Three different types of batteries, including lead acid, NaNiCl (Sodium-Nickel-Chloride) and Lithium ion, are studied in combination with the PV systems. It is found that Lithium ion battery system is superior in achieving higher Self-Sufficiency Ratio (SSR) with the same Life Cycle Cost (LCC). Achieving high SSR with the hybrid PV-battery system is unrealistic because of the seasonal mismatch between the load and electricity production profile. The capacity match between the PV and battery to maximize SSR was investigated, showing different trends under system LCC range of 0.1-40 Million SEK (1SEK≈0.12USD). The system LCC should be lower than 10.6 Million SEK (at the SSR of 36%) in order to keep the payback time positive.